Toronto FC completes season of triumph with 2017 MLS Cup championship

A bevy of well-timed passes with the last one from Sebastian Giovinco. Jozy Altidore drove down with the ball. Altidore tapped the ball slightly to the left. Stefan Frei pulled out a bit. Altidore drove the ball with his left foot in the 67th minute and Toronto FC finally scored a goal in the MLS Cup.

Victor Vazquez added a goal off a rebound from Armando Cooper's shot off the right goalpost in the 94th minute. Toronto FC got revenge over 2016 with a 2-0 win over the Seattle Sounders in the 2017 MLS Cup at BMO Field.

In 2015, Toronto FC made the playoffs for the first time. In 2016, the Reds came a crossbar away from possibly winning the MLS Cup. In 2017, Toronto FC won the Supporters' Shield, the Canadian Cup, and the 2017 MLS Cup.

The 30,584 fans at BMO Field and a few thousand at Maple Leaf Square saw what ESPN even said was a perfect game by Toronto FC. They also got to see Toronto FC accept the Philip F. Anschutz Trophy. Alex Bono posted a 2-save shutout compared to 11 shots for Toronto FC. Toronto outshot Seattle 22-7.

2017 MLS Canadian teams playoffs results

Date

Teams

Winner

Score

December 9

Seattle @ Toronto

Toronto

2-0

November 29

Columbus @ Toronto

Toronto

1-0

November 21

Toronto @ Columbus

Tie

0-0

November 5

New York Red Bulls @ Toronto

NY Red Bulls

1-0

November 2

Vancouver @ Seattle

Seattle

2-0

October 30

Toronto @ New York Red Bulls

Toronto

2-1

October 29

Seattle @ Vancouver

Tie

0-0

October 25

San Jose @ Vancouver

Vancouver

5-0

The 2 Toronto FC goals were extraordinary given Seattle' defence prowess. Here are the streaks that were snapped when Altidore scored in the 67th minute:

714 minutes since Seattle had given up a playoff goal (MLS record), all the way back to the second leg of the 2016 Western Conference final against Colorado Rapids.

609 minutes since the Sounders conceded a goal, going back to a 2-0 loss in Philadelphia on October 1. The Sounders had posted 12 shutouts in their last 18 games.

624 minutes since Stefan Frei had given up a postseason goal (MLS record) with 5 straight playoff shutouts.

This is why the Altidore goal was so huge for Toronto FC.

The MLS Cup Champion Toronto FC Reds will have their parade today starting at Maple Leaf Square at 11:45am and ending at Nathan Phillips Square at 12:30 pm. The ceremony will then take place at Nathan Phillips Square.

Based on the crowds at BMO Field and the folks watching at Maple Leaf Square Saturday night, there should be a huge turnout today.

For such dominance in the regular season, the playoffs had been a struggle. Winning the first round on an away-goals tiebreaker. A lone goal in 2 games in the Eastern Conference final. And a long scoreless streak in the MLS Cup. Toronto FC did play better defence in the 2017 playoffs at perhaps a sacrifice to the offence.

Toronto FC went into the MLS Cup 4-3-2 since mid-September with only a 14-13 scoring difference.

The Toronto FC Reds made it count when it counted in the 2017 MLS Cup. When Altidore scored, a lot of people figured Toronto would win the Cup.

Like in 2016, ESPN made an issue of a lack of Toronto championships in major sports. This ignores the fact that the last Toronto championship happened 13 days before in the 2017 Grey Cup with the Toronto Argonauts. Feels odd having British people explain on American television that Canadian football does not count.

By the ESPN definition, which to be fair is a lot of Toronto, the last Toronto championship belonged to the 1993 Toronto Blue Jays. Let's hope the 2017-2018 Toronto Maple Leafs can add to this bandwagon of winning.

MLS Canadian teams playoffs results

Year

Date

Teams

Winner

Score

2017

December 9

Seattle @ Toronto

Toronto

2-0

2017

November 29

Columbus @ Toronto

Toronto

1-0

2017

November 21

Toronto @ Columbus

Tie

0-0

2017

November 5

New York Red Bulls @ Toronto

NY Red Bulls

1-0

2017

November 2

Vancouver @ Seattle

Seattle

2-0

2017

October 30

Toronto @ New York Red Bulls

Toronto

2-1

2017

October 29

Seattle @ Vancouver

Tie

0-0

2017

October 25

San Jose @ Vancouver

Vancouver

5-0

2016

December 10

Seattle @ Toronto FC

Seattle

0-0 (5-4 PK)

2016

November 30

Montréal @ Toronto FC

Toronto FC

5-2 (OT)

2016

November 22

Toronto FC @ Montréal

Montréal

3-2

2016

November 6

Montréal @ New York Red Bulls

Montréal

2-1

2016

November 6

Toronto FC @ NYCFC

Toronto FC

5-0

2016

October 30

NYCFC @ Toronto FC

Toronto FC

2-0

2016

October 30

New York Red Bulls @ Montréal

Montréal

1-0

2016

October 27

Montréal @ D.C. United

Montréal

4-2

2016

October 26

Philadelphia @ Toronto FC

Toronto FC

3-1

2015

November 8

Portland @ Vancouver

Portland

2-0

2015

November 8

Montréal @ Columbus

Columbus

3-1 (OT)

2015

November 1

Vancouver @ Portland

Tie

0-0

2015

November 1

Columbus @ Montréal

Montréal

2-1

2015

October 29

Toronto FC @ Montréal

Montréal

3-0

2014

October 29

Vancouver @ Dallas

Dallas

2-1

2013

October 31

Montréal @ Houston

Houston

3-0

2012

November 1

Vancouver @ LA Galaxy

LA Galaxy

2-1

Toronto FC won the 2017 MLS Cup. Vancouver Whitecaps won their first MLS game. Montréal Impact had an off year but could easily bounce back. A really nice year for the MLS in Canada.